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UNI'IEU STATES ATENT CFFICEe CHARLES WV. CROSLEY, OF NEW' YORK, N. Y.

FIRE-ESCAPE.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 28,740, dated June 19, 1860.

To all 'whom 'it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES IV. CROSLEY, of the city, county, and State of New York, have invented a new and useful machine for persons safely to escape from buildings when on lire, and I have entitled the same Crosleys re-escape; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the construction and operation of the same, reference being had to the annexed drawings, in which Figure l represents the fire escape in use, letter a thereon represents the fourth floor of the building; B, the box wherein the fire escape is folded; C, the iron frame whereby the fire escape is fastened to the window sill; D, the entrance to the escape from the window; E, the canvas tube divided into compartments separated from each other by india rubber, metallic, or other elastic bands; F, the mouth or exit from the fire escape; G, the idia rubber, metallic, or elast-ic bands.

Fig. 2 is a more extended view of the fire escape showing the canvas tube divided into compartments and also exhibiting the india rubber and metallic bands pressing and contracting the tube.

My fire escape is constructed by firmly sewing the sides of a long strip of canvas together forming thereby a hollow canvas tube. At proper lengths there are sewed to the outside of and around this canvas tube strong bands of india rubber or other elastic substance, thus forming the tube into as many sacks or apartments as there are bands -of india rubber around it. The india rubber or elastic bands press the canvas tube closely together on whatever part of the tube they are placed.

The mode of using my lire escape is by fastening the iron grapplings on the window sill, allowing the tube to descend to the ground, and on this being done the person desiring to escape from the building enters the tube at D, and gradually slides from one compartment of the tube to the next adjoining and in this manner the street is reached and the escape effected. The greater the weight and bulk of the person entei-, ing the tube the greater the resistance of the rings to break the fall of whatever is placed in the interior of the tube, so that the smallest child and the largest person would meetwith a resistance in the descent equal to their size and weight.

That I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent is The application to large canvas tubes of metallic and india rubber bands which Will gradually stretch at a given pressure and allow the person entering the tube to escape from the burning building without the slightest injury as above described, using for that purpose the metallic and india rubber ring or band or any other substantially the same and which will produce the intended effect.

C. WV. CROSLEY. -Witnesses:

CHARLES T. I-IoLsnY, ROBERT LrrrLER. 

